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US prosecutors are considering filing new charges against ousted Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, for torturing Americans during their detention in Venezuela, CNN reported on Wednesday.
Maduro (63) and Flores are already facing charges of drug trafficking into the United States. They have denied these accusations, and Maduro considers himself a "prisoner of war."
CNN, citing sources familiar with the investigation, said the new torture charges relate to the alleged arbitrary detention of more than 12 US citizens in Venezuela during Maduro's rule.
It added that prosecutors are also considering charging a number of other individuals for their roles in the torture of Americans.
The network indicated that the charges could be announced on Thursday, while the public prosecutor's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Agence France-Presse (AFP).
The trial of Maduro and Flores, who are being held in a Brooklyn prison, is scheduled to begin in New York next June.
US prosecutors say Maduro used state power to protect and promote drug trafficking operations, and allied with cartels to export tons of cocaine to the United States.
In contrast, Maduro has pleaded not guilty to four charges related to conspiracy in a "narco-terrorism" case, conspiracy to import cocaine, possession of machine guns and explosive devices, and conspiracy to possess them.
Flores has pleaded not guilty to three charges: the first related to conspiracy to import cocaine, the second to possession of machine guns and explosives, and the third to conspiracy to possess weapons.
Flores is scheduled to appear in court on Thursday to consider a request to transfer her from detention to house arrest due to heart problems she is suffering from.
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